


Soft Sleeps

by championofdogs



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon-Typical Violence, Crushes, Cuddling & Snuggling, Drama, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pining, Platonic Cuddling, Public Humiliation, Slow Burn, very light mentions of past handsome jack/nisha
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-10-09 06:39:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17401907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/championofdogs/pseuds/championofdogs
Summary: ‘Soft Sleeps’ – a silly name for a company that essentially rented out people for cuddling. Jack had scoffed at the idea when they sent through their work permit, but 8 months later the company was booming. Turns out a space station full of touch-starved cutthroat business sharks was the perfect den for a lucrative business in platonic, harmless affection.And Jack was the most touch-starved business shark there was.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> It's literally been like ten years since I've written anything, so go easy on me. Not beta read.

 

It had started 8 months ago. An unassuming paper laid on Jack’s desk by his PA for a dumb little business called ‘Soft Sleeps’. They’d sent in their work permit on some lavender-smelling paper requesting to open business for a weird, safe for work prostitution business as far as Jack could tell.

His HR team had _loved_ it; they said it would be good for business. Cuddles meant less stress, and less stress meant more productivity, but also putting in the initiative to make his employees happier made Hyperion – and therefore Jack – look like they actually gave a crap. Which Jack didn’t, but money was good. The projected profits had looked good and Helios always got a cut of the profits when a business opened shop on his space station.

So he’d signed the papers and thought nothing more of it, even when he saw the business on his daily trek through the Hub of Heroism. Even when his dumb corporate stooges whispered about it in the halls. And even when his PA dropped off some very generous coupons that the owner of Soft Sleeps had specifically sent for Jack as a thank you gift for being a benevolent god and allowing them to open.

Jack had tossed the coupons into a drawer with a roll of his eyes but as people continued to talk about it, the idea got stuck in his head continuously throughout the day. When he finished a stressful meeting, or sat at home after a garbage day, he thought about how nice it could be to cuddle up with some pretty young thing. They could sit on his ridiculously comfortable couch, Jack could get his hair played with; it could be nice. And they would be cute, right? Jack seriously doubted people were shelling out cash to cuddle up with some crusty  perverts, or an old granny who smelled like mothballs.

The thing was, Jack could get anyone he wanted. He’d ruled off relationships after his third failed marriage and had stuck to fucking around since then. Cuddling in those situations was something he avoided lest it develop into unwanted affections from people who didn’t understand no strings attached. The idea of needing to pay for someone to cuddle with him was ludicrous but it was admittedly something he was out of practice on now, and not something he wanted to share with just anyone. It was hard to be close with someone who didn’t expect more in return. Jack was… admittedly nervous.

Jack had fiddled with the coupon in his desk enough times that the edges were completely warped and the text was starting to become illegible by the bend marks in it, always debating calling. He went through this same looping cycle time and time again, but he never could bring himself to call.

It was a Thursday when Jack snapped.

“What the hell do you mean you don’t have the prototype finished?” Jack barked, staring at the trembling man standing across from his desk. Digmen – Dogman? – whatever his name was, stuttered out excuses as he tried to explain why his department still didn’t have any progress to show on the new shields that integrated with cybernetic enhancements. Contrary to popular belief and his exes, Jack could be a patient guy. He had been gracious enough to give them an extra week and a half after their test subject’s arm somehow exploded with the prototype shield tech on it. There wasn’t much they could do about it if the device literally wasn’t there anymore.

But a full two weeks later Jack had to get his security team to physically drag Dogface up to his office after the guy repeatedly dodged his PA’s calls and emails. Here they were now, and there was no shield to show him. Just a cowardly man that looked ready to piss himself.

Jack had stalked over to the puny shaking man and wrapped his arms around his neck in a flash. There had been a struggle after the guy had finally broke out of his shocked state which had resulted in them falling to the floor, but he’d never stood a chance.

And then like some weird scripted fate Jack noticed that the guy’s wallet had fallen out of his pants pocket. There sat a business card from Soft Sleeps front and centre.

The Soft Sleeps representative he spoke with over the phone had been surprisingly professional. It’s not like Jack didn’t know it was a legitimate business, he’d signed off on it himself, but actually contacting them legitimized it in his head instead of it being a fantasy project.

He’d spoken to an older sounding woman named Carol who had collected some information on his preferences _– Do you mind cuddling with a man?_ – and promised to send up one of their best agents first thing in the morning to go into more details on what exactly Jack was looking for as well as signing a butt-load of paperwork for safety reasons. That served Jack just fine; he’d already contacted his lawyers to get a non-disclosure agreement created for his potential uh. Cuddle buddy.

Carol had been nice enough and had simply laughed off his concerns about being sent some geriatric patient that would break a hip while they cuddled, but that was that. The appointment was made.

Jack looked down at the information he’d collected during their call. Apparently he would be meeting with a ‘Rhys Davies’ 9AM sharp tomorrow to discuss, and if things didn’t work out they could send a different agent or forget the whole thing.

_Well, Rhys. I hope you like being the little spoon._

\--

 

When Rhys was growing up he had a lot of ambitions. At ten years old, he was convinced that he would become the president of the whole galaxy. As he grew older (and found out that wasn't a thing) he'd gotten a little more realistic and decided on becoming the head of his own company. Everyone knew that was where the real power was - just look at Handsome Jack. The guy had his own space station and could kill a man without anyone batting an eye. That was absolute power.

Maybe he didn't want to kill anyone personally, but being able to do whatever he wanted and be respected by millions was the dream.

And so far it really had stayed a dream, but at least he was closer to Handsome Jack. Rhys liked to think if he stayed in the man's general orbit some of that power could rub off on him. It had been working too; from 23 to 27 he'd made his way up the ranks of Hyperion and was sitting with a cushy job as a middle manager with some great friends.

Then Vasquez had come along and apparently knocked him out of the Handsome Jack orbit because he had been de-promoted to assistant vice janitor with a smug wave goodbye.

Rhys wasn't a quitter, but it was hard to see how he could possibly get back up the ranks after that. So when a friend of a friend had told him about a new business they were opening up, he'd jumped ship so to speak. At least he got to stay on Helios this way.

Apparently they had seen a market in taking advantage of these poor bastard's lack of physical affection and attention and decided to cash in on it. Rhys could understand that; there were many times where he'd had a terrible day and really needed a hug. But that's what he'd had Vaughn for, because apparently unlike the rest of Hyperion he knew how to have friendships.

But putting his own thoughts aside, it had been an easy job so far with a pretty lucrative pay - certainly more than that of an assistant vice janitor. He just held sad old men and then went home and took a shower.

Rhys didn't expect this morning to be any different when he walked into his workplace at 8AM to check his appointments for the day, but life liked to constantly surprise him.

“Rhys honey, you might as well start dishing out the thank-yous now. I got you the best job in the world.” Carol said almost as soon as he'd walked in.

“The last time you said that I held a crying woman for like three hours so excuse me if I don't believe you.” Rhys leaned against the desk, waiting for her to continue.

“Okay that one was a bust, but she really was high up on the Hyperion food chain. And this time it's even higher! You're going to meet with Handsome Jack.”

Rhys blinked.

Meeting with Handsome Jack was not a good thing. Rhys had always been a little bit of a fanboy both before and after working for Hyperion; Handsome Jack represented everything that he wanted in life. And he was genuinely handsome to boot.

But Rhys had survived long enough on Helios to know that meeting Jack did not end well. The life expectancy rate of going to Handsome Jack's office and surviving was 47% in the wrong direction. Why would it even be Rhys going? Surely Handsome Jack didn't want some stranger to sit in his lap and listen to his day; he was probably too busy punching executives and saving babies from buildings on fire. That he set.

“I'm sorry. I could’ve sworn you said Handsome Jack but that just. That's not possible. Shouldn't Fiona be meeting with him? She's a lot more diplomatic, and she knows the numbers way better than me.”

Speak of the devil and Fiona appeared; the co-owner of Soft Sleeps along with her sister Sasha.

“You're right about that, but there's no way I'm touching that monster.” Fiona snorted. Neither of the sisters actually cared about Hyperion. They'd grown up on Pandora as swindlers and had moved up to Helios to continue that business in a more official manner. They never did appointments themselves, claiming that they didn't want to touch Hyperion employees lest they contract a case of 'the jerkwads’.

“So I uh. So. What?” Rhys jumbled.

“He's interested, Rhys. You're going for a consultation in 40 minutes.” Fiona put her hands on Rhys’ shoulders and looked him in the eyes with as serious of an expression as she could muster.

“Don't blow this for us, Rhys. If Handsome Jack decides he wants to cuddle with your boney ass that could change our business. We would probably be able to open up more than one location. Just try not to be so… You, y'know?”

Rhys raised an eyebrow. No, he didn't know. He was great, and anyone should be lucky enough to have him in their bed. Rhys genuinely loved cuddling and he was very adaptable when it came to positions. If Handsome Jack was interested then he would apparently just have to show him this. Also his butt was most definitely not boney.

“Also please for the love of all that is good in the world do not tell people about this. Handsome Jack sent over like fifty NDA's. People includes Vaughn, Rhys.”

Rhys pursed his lips. He was pretty sure Vaughn was not people but instead an extension of himself created through the power of broship but whatever.

“Fine. I bet everything he owns is butter soft and feels like sitting on a cloud anyways. I'll keep it all to myself.”

35 minutes later and Rhys was standing in front of the receptionist of Handsome Jack's office awkwardly waiting for access to the CEO's office. The irony that he was finally going to Jack's office when he wasn't even an employee was not lost on him.

“You can go in now. Good luck.” Said the bored looking receptionist. Rhys took a deep breath and walked forward with purpose.

Handsome Jack's office was not at all what Rhys had imagined, although in that moment he couldn't think of anything more fitting. It was incredibly large, and he could hear the way his steps echoed as he approached Jack's chair slowly but surely.

Handsome Jack. Who was sitting in his almighty yellow throne-chair. Staring at him with his fingers steepled and a curious raised eyebrow. Good lord Rhys _really_ hoped this wasn't a prank and that Jack actually knew he was supposed to be coming. Rhys stopped in front of the CEO's desk but before he could say anything Jack did.

“Rhys, right? Listen kiddo, let me preface by saying that I don't need this. I could call literally anyone into my office and have them curl up in bed with me no problemo. I just didn't really feel like having a kiss-ass in my personal space, so why not use someone from an agency, right? You guys are a professional business. Kinda. You're not Hyperion level, but you're a business anyways. Hey, you signed all that paperwork I sent over, right? Hand it over.”

This was definitely not what he'd expected Jack to be like in person. Posturing, insulting his business (well, Fiona and Sasha's), and being generally rude. Jack was being very much so like every other Hyperion douche he'd dealt with. Jack was busy checking that everything was signed so Rhys took his chance to talk, settling into the chair across from Jack's and placing the rest of his paperwork on the table.

“Listen, Handsome Jack. You don't have to act macho in front of me. Sometimes people just want some affection. Plus you made me sign enough papers that even if I wanted to talk about it I couldn't. It doesn't have to be a big deal.”

Jack looked up from his papers and raised an eyebrow, but didn't speak. Rhys took that as a good sign and continued.

“If you don't like it after one session then we can stop and pretend nothing happened. But I think you'll find it's really nice. I'm an expert cuddler, or whatever you need - here's the sheet of different services.” Rhys pushed the paper closer to Jack's reach. The man eyed Rhys for a moment longer before pulling it closer and actually reading it.

“Man, how can you be so calm when this is your job. You really get paid to hold someone's hand? _Braid their hair?_ The hell is that about.” Jack muttered, but it was more so to himself even if it was about Rhys.

The exasperation was fair. Some of the services felt awfully silly to put on paper but it was important to make the distinction of what both parties were okay with. This wasn't a sexual business, it was all about comfort. That didn't stop Rhys from blushing in embarrassment when Fiona made him go through the list and check off what he was okay with.

“I don't think your hair is long enough, but I mean I can braid it if you want.” Rhys joked. Jack snorted but didn't respond right away. Eventually he sighed and put the paper down.

“Kiddo, this shit is embarrassing. I've read your side, I won't poke around your metal bits. But let's make this simple: if you do something I don't like, I'll tell you to knock it off. If you do it again, I'll knock your head off. Capiche?”

That was definitely not okay and Fiona would probably have a fit but Rhys didn't really feel like pissing Jack off.

“Okay.”

“Good! Alright, come to papa.” Jack pulled away from his desk and patted his lap.

“Wait - wait, right now?”

“Why the hell not? I thought you said we were going to test this out. So hop on.”

Rhys stood in a daze and made his way around the desk to where Jack was still patting his lap as if Rhys might have forgotten in the short trip where he was supposed to plant his ass down. Part of him was waiting for Jack to say sike and throw him out of an airlock but it never came.

“Should I - how should I do this?” Rhys questioned, staring down at Jack's lap like it was the most confusing puzzle on the planet.

“You're the professional, kiddo. Sit down, make yourself comfortable, and then make me comfortable. That's your job, right?”

That was fair, but normally he didn't cuddle with someone in an office chair. And normally they didn't have the power to kill him in seconds and get away with it. What if Rhys actually was terrible at his job? What if Fiona was right and his ass was too boney, and Jack was mad that his boney butt hurt his legs?

“Or you could go cuddle with the stars. Just putting that out there.”

Rhys quickly snapped out of his mental tirade and carefully straddled Handsome Jack's lap. He wiggled around so that he was comfortably pressed against the man's front before wrapping his arms around the CEO's neck. He curled his flesh hand through the hair on the back of the man's head, thrilling when Jack shivered.

“Now you wrap your arms around me. Anywhere you want.” Rhys whispered. There was no one else in the room, but still the moment felt strangely intimate.

Jack felt it too, but he resisted the urge to break the moment by slapping a hand down on Rhys’ ass like he was so tempted to do. Instead he wrapped them around his middle, lightly at first and then tighter when it felt good.

And it did feel good. Rhys wasn't very heavy, the pressure on him was just enough to be warm and reassuring and undoubtedly human. And the hand trailing through his hair was already putting Jack to sleep. His whole body relaxed and turned to mush in minutes as they continued to sit there. He'd always been a sucker for after sex cuddles when he was actually committed to a person, and apparently his body had been missing that. Instead of dealing with whatever that actually meant, he pushed his face into Rhys’ neck and held him tighter.

They sat quietly like that for an hour, just enjoying each other's presence before Jack’s screen beeped at him. It was a reminder that he had a meeting in ten minutes but the sound jolted them apart like they had been caught in a secret lover's embrace. Rhys looked at Jack in question and got a pat to his thighs, a clear sign to hop off.

When they were separated Jack cleared his throat and pulled his chair closer to his desk, wiggling his computer mouse to wake up the screen again and get back to work.

“Surprisingly that wasn't a waste of time. Have your people contact mine, we'll set up a few more test appointments. Now get out.”

Rhys couldn't bring himself to be offended by the abrupt dismissal. He fixed his rustled clothing and walked out without a word, nodding his head at the receptionist on his way to the elevator.

No, he knew that Jack had enjoyed their session.

He'd been hard the entire time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who left feedback on the first chapter! Like I said before, I haven't written anything in about 10 years so I was extremely nervous to put myself out there but the reception has been amazing!! Please keep reviewing, you make my heart sing.
> 
> Not beta read.

Rhys met Vaughn Dudley Arquette his first day of college at the age of 18. Well to be more specific, he met Vaughn the first _night_ of college at a freshman orientation party. Rhys was away from his parents for the first time in his life and had decided to try every dumb rebellious thing a young adult could do. Which had somehow translated to Rhys doing a keg stand.

Vaughn hadn't been part of the cheering crowd yelling a chorus of ‘CHUG! CHUG! CHUG!’ but he _had_ been part of the crowd wincing in sympathy when Rhys immediately barfed all over himself once he was righted on the ground.

Drunk teens were not a sympathetic crowd; most people laughed and then immediately moved on to load up the next person for a keg stand while Rhys sat on the ground, drunk and confused and disgusting.

Until a tiny angel's hand appeared from the crowd as his saving grace, dragged him to the upstairs bathroom, and got him in the shower with his clothing still on but his wallet and phone thankfully not in his pocket.

That tiny angel was Vaughn, and despite Rhys making literally the worst first impression ever they'd been bros ever since. Vaughn had actually helped Rhys get his job at Hyperion; the accounting program was shorter and he'd had a whole year to build connections and then turn around and help his best friend out in turn.

It was a shame that Fiona could care less about Rhys and Vaughn's backstory despite Rhys’ drunk but passionate re-telling to her and Sasha during a company outing the first month of his employment at Soft Sleeps. She just didn't understand that there was no way Rhys _wasn't_ going to tell Vaughn about his session with Handsome Jack immediately.

“Vaughn, holy fuck!” Rhys yelled literally as soon as he had his apartment door open. After his appointment with Handsome Jack Rhys had to report back to Fiona and tell her the news - although by the time he'd arrived she was already sending Jack's requested dates to Carol for scheduling. There were 3 more appointments scheduled for the next two weeks.

But unfortunately Rhys still had other work for the day and hadn't been able to rush home and tell Vaughn all the dirty details. By the time he did arrive home at 6pm, he was practically vibrating.

“What? What's up? Are we being robbed?” Vaughn called from the kitchen. Rhys could smell something cooking now that he focused. Something that smelled healthy. _Gross._ He made a face and walked quickly into the kitchen so they didn't have to yell across their apartment like barbarians. Or get another noise complaint.

“No dude, but you would not believe the day I've had.”

“Rhys, bro, I literally can never believe the day you've had. You have the weirdest job on Helios.” Vaughn countered, stirring something in a pot. Rhys had no idea what it was, but he'd already resigned himself to a date with a TV dinner.

“That's absolutely fair, but this one takes the cake. I'm going to need you to sit down for this.” Vaughn looked at Rhys and then pointedly at his cooking food.

“Oh my god fine, but when you faint from shock I'm not saving your dinner.  So here goes - I had a session today. With Handsome Jack.”

Vaughn had always been a bit of a mother hen when it came to Rhys. Rhys had joked many times that his mother must have hired Vaughn to be his nanny so that Rhys couldn't do dumb stuff in college. But that meant Rhys was used to a certain amount of concern from his friend.

Which is why it came as such a surprise when Vaughn started laughing instead.

“Vaughn! Are you - are you seriously laughing right now?” But Rhys’ indignation only made Vaughn laugh louder.

“I'm being serious! We cuddled for like an hour!” Vaughn was _crying_ laughing now. Rhys had never been more betrayed in his life. It took Vaughn another 5 minutes before he settled down, moving his food to cool in the meantime.

“Rhys, man. I believe you, because your life really is that weird. But the idea of Handsome Jack, our fearless leader, cuddling with you? It's like imagining an alpha skag with a baby kitten.” Rhys scowled, although it ended up looking more like a pout.

“So wait, you really just cuddled? Like in his office?”

“Yeah! Dude, in his _chair!_ It was weird!”

They talked more about the situation over dinner, Rhys swore Vaughn to secrecy which he knew he'd keep, and a few hours later Rhys was sitting up in bed still thinking about his day.

Rhys hadn't been lying, the session was weird. Usually Rhys could go over a client's preferences first, see what they were looking for from the session, get comfortable with each other. But Jack had postured in front of Rhys and tossed his checklist back in his face, only to immediately cling to Rhys during their impromptu session.

Which left Rhys thinking about it hours later. He wasn't sure what exactly Jack was looking for. All he knew was that Jack was deeply, irrevocably lonely.

\--

The next appointment with Handsome Jack was scheduled for Monday afternoon, which gave Rhys two days in between to get over meeting his long-time sort of hero and then cuddling with said hero.

Rhys once again stood awkwardly in front of the receptionist as he waited for access to the CEO's office, although the wait wasn't as long this time. Almost as soon as the receptionist called Jack to let him know that Rhys was here, Jack barked for her to send him in.

“You heard him.” The receptionist made a shoo-ing motion and looked back to her computer screen.

Rhys quickly entered Jack's office and made his way up the stairs. Even though they had only done this once and it absolutely could have been a fluke, Rhys was feeling confident. And cute. He'd worn his favourite baby blue cardigan that was nice and warm and just a little too big along with his most fashionable sweat pants. He was ready for hardcore cuddle sessions this time, unlike last time when Jack had surprised him and Rhys had to wear dress pants. Not comfy.

No surprise, Jack spoke as soon as Rhys was in front of him.

“Good, you're here. I'm going to need you to hop in my lap like, five minutes ago.”

Once Rhys was in front of Jack he could see just how… haggard the man looked. He looked like he hadn't slept in 48 hours and was shaking slightly from probably way too much caffeine. Rhys was pretty sure that while everyone else had taken the weekend off, Jack hadn't even left his office.

“Don't you think it would be more comfortable to cuddle on the couch? Chairs aren't exactly made for this.” Rhys tried.

Jack cast a positively longing glance at his couch but shook his head.

“No dice, cupcake. I don't have the time. I'd go into more details but you're not exactly Hyperion, so.”

Rhys frowned but made his way over to Jack anyways. He probably wouldn't be able to get the man to sleep but if he could help him relax even a bit then he would try his best. It was literally his job.

They switched up the position a bit today. Instead of straddling Jack, Rhys sat sideways with his legs hanging over the arm rest. He wrapped his flesh hand around the back of Jack's neck and let his own head rest against his arm and Jack's shoulder.

Jack in turn wrapped his right arm around Rhys’ back in a way that he could still use the mouse of his computer. His left hand rested on Rhys’ thigh which he started to stroke in a subconscious gesture. Rhys sighed happily.

Cuddling with Jack was nice. The man was warm, although that wasn't too surprising given how many layers he constantly wore. And while they were similar in heights, Jack was broad where he was not, with big hands that made Rhys feel safe and secure in his arms. He was quickly becoming one of Rhys’ favourite clients.

“Y'know I used to be Hyperion.” Rhys started. Jack paused from where he had been clicking furiously on his mouse, craning his neck awkwardly to look at Rhys.

“Maybe I'm biased because it's my company, but why the hell would you leave Hyperion only to cuddle with my employees? Hyperion is where it's at, kiddo.” Rhys rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, it _was_ until a jerk killed my boss and demoted me to a janitor. I'd rather cuddle with your employees than clean up their messes. Besides, this is way less stressful for me.” Rhys shot a pointed stare at Jack who grumbled and squeezed Rhys closer to him.

“Well one of us has to keep this space station afloat, cupcake. You just sit there and play with my hair while I do the real work.”

He got his hair pulled in retaliation.

They sat in silence for quite awhile after that, Jack grumbling and typing angrily at his screen only to relax instantly when Rhys ran his fingers through the hair at the back of Jack's head, or played with the front of Jack's shirt with his metal hand. Then he would pause what he was doing to breathe and squeeze Rhys impossibly closer to himself. It was weird, seeing just how much Rhys was effecting Jack's mood in real time, but strangely fulfilling.

Sometime later Jack poked Rhys in the side and Rhys turned away from his current goal of nuzzling into Jack's neck in order to start climbing off the man. He paused when Jack gripped his thigh and instead looked up at Jack with a confused expression.

“I'm having you over on Friday. At my apartment. Obviously if you leak my address I'll personally strangle you to death, so I suggest you don't. Also you're spending the night, so bring whatever you might need. I'm not giving you an extra toothbrush because you forgot.”

Rhys blinked but nodded, finally getting off of Jack's lap. He hissed as pins and needles attacked his legs.

“Thanks, kiddo. That was uh, surprisingly nice. I got you a little something.” A little something was apparently $200 that Jack pulled out of his desk. It had clearly been sitting there for this exact moment. Rhys raised an eyebrow but took the money when Jack handed it over to him.

“Is this hush money because you got a boner when I sat on you?” Jack stared at Rhys for a moment before pinching the bridge of his nose. He sounded physically pained when he spoke, his eyes closed as if he couldn't bear to look at Rhys right now.

“ _No,_ no it's not. Holy frig, get out of here before I change my mind, kiddo.” Jack nodded his head in the general direction of his door, but Rhys wasn't having it this time.

“My name's Rhys, y'know. Not kiddo. Also I don't care that you got a boner.”

“Rhys, oh my god. Please leave.” Jack said, but he was smiling openly at Rhys now, a light blush visible from behind his mask.

Rhys really liked that smile.

\--

Friday morning had Rhys packing an overnight bag, making sure that he brought his own toothbrush because he was pretty sure Jack wouldn't go back on his word if he forgot his. _He probably doesn't even have a spare. It doesn't seem like he gets a lot of company._

Vaughn sat on his bed while he packed way too much stuff, idly playing with a rubix cube that Rhys had never actually solved himself in the ten years he'd owned it.

“Okay, I didn't want to say it but. I'm worried, Rhys.”

Rhys looked up from where he was currently trying to zip up his too-full bag. Okay, maybe three pairs of underwear was too much for a single night trip but _What If?_

“I've slept away from home before, Vaughn. I think I'll be okay.” He joked.

“You know that's not what I meant. Isn't this moving a little fast?” Vaughn asked, getting up to close Rhys’ bag for him in an impressive bout of strength. Show-off.

“How can it be moving fast? We're not boyfriends, he's my client. It's a little odd I guess, but I mean it's Handsome Jack. He doesn't exactly play by the rules.”

“I just worry. What if you drool on his fancy bedding and he shoots you for ruining it?”

“That won't happen because I don't drool, Vaughn.” Rhys sniffed, crossing his arms defiantly. Vaughn shot him an unimpressed stare.

“Just be careful, man. Handsome Jack getting attached to you seems like more trouble than it's worth.”

\--

Later that Friday, Rhys arrived at literally the fanciest building he'd ever seen. It was on the rich side of Helios; there were more Loaderbots than people in the area and Rhys made a point to wave and smile at every one that he saw. He said nothing about the ones that waved back.

After riding up in an elevator bigger and fancier than his bedroom, he arrived in front of Handsome Jack's door. Almost as soon as he'd knocked, Jack answered.

“Hey, come in quick. I've got food cooking and I don't want it to burn.” Jack quickly ushered Rhys in and closed the door, which locked automatically with a series of clicks. _Jeez, even his door is fancy._ Jack made his way back to the kitchen which was apparently not that far from the door, looking back over his shoulder as he spoke.

“Take off your shoes, kiddo. Did you eat yet?”

“Uh. Technically yes?” Rhys shrugged, but Jack wasn't watching him. He'd gone back to focusing on his food.

“What the hell does technically mean? Did you photosynthesize or something?” Rhys made his way into the kitchen, leaving his shoes and bag at the door.

“I had instant ramen a few hours ago.”

Jack paused from what he was doing to look at Rhys with a physically pained expression. He looked at Rhys that way a lot apparently.

“Rhysie. That's not food. Please tell me you don't live like that.” Rhys smiled and shrugged again.

“Uh, I'm banned from the oven at my apartment because I burn everything. Sometimes I'll eat what my roommate makes if it's not some weird experimental health food, but other than that… TV dinners and ramen.”

“Honestly I'm not sure how you're alive. Friggin jerk, I bet you can eat whatever you want and look all… like that.” Jack waved an arm in Rhys’ vague direction behind him.

Jack wasn't wrong and it drove Vaughn nuts. He said that in ten years’ time it would all catch up to Rhys and then they would have to go on some reality TV show when Rhys weighed 1000lbs.

“Less judgment, more cooking. What are you making? It smells great.”

“Gnocchi skillet. There's some spicy chicken sausage, cherry tomatoes, and basil in here too. Nothing fancy.”

“Nothing fancy my ass! That sounds amazing, you show off.” Jack looked over his shoulder again with a raised brow.

“It really isn't fancy, pumpkin. You just have the food palette of a 5 year old.”

They teased each other back and forth until the food was ready. Jack made Rhys set the table which was a struggle because the man had 50 cupboards and drawers in his kitchen, but eventually they were able to sit down and eat.

“Ugh, this is so good. Maybe instead of taking money I can just get paid in homemade meals.”

Jack snorted.

“I don't think your bosses would like that much, but I'll keep that in mind.”

Afterwards they headed over to Jack's living room, upon which Rhys immediately fell in love with Jack's couch. It was the most plush-looking thing he'd ever seen in his life, and the perfect size for two people to cuddle up on comfortably. It even looked long enough for his legs to not hang off.

“Finally we're in my area of expertise. No more stupid chair cuddles!” Rhys cheered.

“Excuse you, my chair is awesome and amazingly comfortable.” Jack grumbled. He flopped down on the couch, immediately stretching out and making himself comfortable. Rhys waited until Jack finished before climbing on top of the older man, his head resting on Jack's chest near his heartbeat which immediately picked up. He rested his metal arm near his face, the flesh one tucked somewhat awkwardly behind Jack which he knew he would regret later when it went numb. Jack's legs bracketed both of his own, leaving Rhys comfortable and secure.

“I'm so full. I hope you're comfortable here, I'm probably going to fall asleep on you in a food coma.” Rhys joked. Jack snorted and brought a hand down to wrap around his middle in what was apparently his favourite comfort spot. Rhys’ shirt had ridden up in their efforts to get comfortable and Jack's fingers had chosen to stroke the new area in a repetitive motion. Not something Rhys would normally be okay with given how intimate it felt, but he was too comfortable to make a fuss. It really was nice.

Jack ended up putting on some reality show when Rhys told him to stop on the channel. He'd been insulting towards every contestant at the start as they tried to start their modeling career, but by the end he'd been reluctantly enraptured, enough so to have actual opinions on things. They watched a few more episodes together with periodic commentary, not changing from their position much throughout it. The only thing that seemed to change was Jack's hands; they moved restlessly up and down Rhys’ body like they weren't sure he was real and they needed to take inventory every few minutes to make sure he was.

True to his word Rhys fell asleep sometime into the 4th episode, the rumble of Jack's voice and his warm hands on his body easily putting him under.

Rhys awoke sometime later to a finger poking his exposed stomach repeatedly. He tried to swat the hand away, nuzzling his face deeper into Jack's chest, but his hand was caught in a much bigger hand, while the one that had been poking him suddenly decided to mercilessly tickle him as best as it could without its brethren.

Rhys let out an undignified shriek, sitting up quickly and glaring down at Jack who he was still on top of. Jack smiled wide at him, no shame whatsoever.

“Oh good, you're awake! Get off me, pumpkin. I have to pee like a racehorse, and it's late enough that we should move to my bed. If you thought the couch was impressive, just wait until you see the bed.”

Rhys grumbled angrily but got off of Jack anyways. What a rude, evil man. He'd been _so_ comfy.

Jack lead Rhys to his bedroom with a hand at the small of his back, leaving Rhys in front of his bed with the bag they'd grabbed along the way. Jack had gone into the attached master bathroom, leaving Rhys to change into his pajamas and think.

Despite his words, Rhys could tell immediately that Jack's bed was terrible. There was no doubt that it would probably be ridiculously comfortable, but it was also gigantic. 5-6 people could have slept comfortably in it without even touching. Sleeping in that every night, alone? It wasn't doing the man any favours for his obvious loneliness.

Jack came out not long after and they switched places, Jack changing in his bedroom and Rhys doing his nightly activities. When he came back into the room Jack was sitting up in bed waiting for him.

Rhys crawled across the bed with zero grace, quickly getting under the covers once he was close to Jack. Before he could ask him how he slept best, a hand was pushing him on to his side.

“Now it's my turn to show you my expertise, kiddo. Spooning is what I'm best at! I'll spoon you so hard.”

Rhys snorted even as he got comfortable with Jack against his back, a hairy leg pressing between his thighs and a familiar arm around his middle. Jack rested his chin on Rhys’ head and okay, yeah, he was pretty good at this. But still he had to comment.

“Did you really just try to cuddle-dirty talk me?” The hand resting around his middle came up to lazily pat Rhys’ face and Rhys squawked, wiggling around to try and get it away.

“Shh Rhysie. It's sleep time now. Be annoying in the morning.” Rhys sighed but settled down, content when Jack also put his hand back where it belonged around him.

They slept soundly until morning; Jack wrapped tight around Rhys like he was his lifeline.

\--

The next morning had them waking up slow. Rhys was painfully aware of the hard-on pressed against his backside, but he politely ignored it as they pulled apart to do their morning stretches in bed.

Jack let out a jaw-cracking yawn, smiling sleepily at Rhys when he was done.

“Breakfast?”

Rhys smiled back.

After breakfast, Rhys was packed up once again and waiting for Jack to unlock his overly-complicated door which apparently had 5 locks on it. When it was unlocked, Jack smiled at him once again as he held it open.

“Thanks for staying the night. I'll uh, have my people talk to yours again about setting up more appointments for the following weeks.”

Rhys nodded, making his way out the door. He paused when he was out of the apartment, turning to look at Jack again before dropping his bag and opening his arms.

“Hug goodbye?”

Jack looked genuinely perplexed but eventually he snorted and pulled away from the door, closer into Rhys’ space. Despite his apparent surprise over Rhys’ request he immediately wrapped his arms tightly around Rhys and sighed in contentment, nuzzling his nose in Rhys' hair.

They stayed that way for a long while, standing in the middle of the hall and hugging. When they pulled apart, Rhys started making his way back to the elevator, turning to look back once at Jack who was still in the hallway. He smiled and waved goodbye.

Jack's heart skipped a beat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter Jack has FEELINGS


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you once again to everyone who has been giving me positive feedback! In this chapter Jack has FEELINGS and I hope you enjoy it

The next day when Rhys showed up at work to see about his appointments, he was immediately dragged to the back by Sasha. Fiona was already sitting at her desk, and once they entered Sasha joined her by leaning against it. Rhys sat down in the chair across from them and waited for them to say something, but apparently they were content with staring intimidatingly at him, so he broke the silence first.

“Uh, hi? Am I in trouble?” He asked, looking between the two sisters. Sasha crossed her arms.

“I don't know, Rhys. Are you?” She parroted. Fiona rolled her eyes.

“What Sasha means to say is it looks like Handsome Jack has taken quite the shine to you, Rhys. You haven't been seeing him for very long and he's already upped the sessions to three times a week for the next month. What's going on between you two?” There was an unasked question of _Are you okay?_ In there, but they all knew she wouldn't actually say it.

“How should I know? I'm just doing my job and I guess he's really receptive. I have a feeling he was really missing out on affection.” Both sisters frowned at his answer.

“One of the appointments that he asked for overlapped with another regular of yours. When I told him we could send someone else for that day he immediately shut me down. It's not just cuddling, Rhys. It's you.”

“Okay, so what? Handsome Jack has a big crush and wants to cuddle me?” Rhys joked. Neither sister looked amused.

“Guys, come on. He's lonely and I'm familiar now. I sincerely doubt he has a crush, be realistic here.”

The sisters left it at that although neither of them looked pleased by his response. Rhys wasn't sure why they were so somber about the whole thing. They wanted Jack to like him so that he would put in a good word for Soft Sleeps anyways, so what was the big idea?

It was just ridiculous. There was no way that the CEO of Hyperion had a crush on _Rhys_ of all people.

\--

Handsome Jack maybe-sorta-kinda had a crush. On Rhys of all people.

Initially he didn't notice that anything was different, just that being around Rhys made him happy. That wasn't all that weird; Rhys was being paid to cuddle with him, and cuddling made people happy, right? It wasn't anything specific about Rhys that made it special.

Except it was.

He'd called his contact at Soft Sleeps directly in order to set up a few more appointments. Cuddling made him happy, which was probably good for company morale seeing as he was killing less of the company, so why not indulge in it? Seeing each other 3-4 times a week wasn't unrealistic, it was the kid's job. Jack was doing him a favour.

But the lady he'd spoken to told him that Rhys wasn't available for one of the days he'd requested. She'd offered some other worker to do the appointment and that just hadn't sat well with him at all, so he'd switched it to another day that Rhys was available.

But still, that didn't mean it was a crush, did it? He was Handsome friggin Jack, CEO of Hyperion, and 42 years old. He didn't _get_ crushes anymore. He'd had girlfriends and boyfriends, a buttload of one night stands, and a few wives. He was over it.

Apparently Jack's dumb heart wasn't over it though, because he continued to see Rhys over the next few weeks, and then when he wasn't seeing Rhys he was still thinking about Rhys. At work and at home. The weird cuddle octopus had invaded his life.

So maybe he had a bit of a crush. The question was what to do about it.

Jack had been betrayed a lot of times in his life. When people are constantly stabbing you in the back, it's hard to keep healthy friendships. But there were a select few that he'd kept in contact with over the years even if they had drifted over time.

The first was Timothy Lawrence, although better known as Handsome Jack, his first body double. They kept in close contact given that Jack was, y'know, his boss and likeliness. Tim had definitely been scared of Jack in the beginning. Well, there wasn't much he wasn't scared of initially. But it had been years, and once Tim was pretty sure Jack wasn't going to kill him over every tiny mistake, they'd ended up getting along fairly well. Jack had even given him his name back as a birthday present!

The next was Nisha Kadam. He'd met Nisha around the same time he met Tim, but unlike Tim he'd hit it off with Nisha almost immediately. When Jack had become Handsome Jack he'd started dating Nisha, but things had fizzled out. They were both too busy to find the time; she took her job as mayor of Lynchwood seriously, and obviously he had Hyperion to worry about. They'd gone from dating to fuck buddies to friends with a history, but he knew he could always count on her.

The last was Wilhelm. Wil was an odd character; he had an obsession with robots and cybernetic enhancements that surpassed anyone else. _Even Rhys_ , his mind helpfully uttered. Wilhelm was his trusted bodyguard and enforcer. They didn't have much of a buddy-buddy comradery but he knew the guy would take a bullet for him. Or like, 1000 bullets to be more precise.

It was rare that they all got together these days because adulthood meant being busy all the damn time, but Jack had called them up to meet at a bar on Elpis for some drinks (but really as a clever rouse to trick them into talking about his feelings with him).

Jack was the last to arrive because he liked to be fashionably late, but it was easy to spot his crew. Wilhelm wasn't exactly a small guy, and Nisha seemed to be arm wrestling with their waiter.

“Sup. Feel like I missed something.” Jack said in greeting as he sat down beside Tim and away from the action.

“Nisha’s trying to get free drinks. This is a power move, I guess? That's what she said.” Tim shrugged, sipping carefully at his drink. He _would_ say that's what she said completely unironically. Jack turned his attention to Wilhelm.

“Hey Wil. How goes the uh, being a robot thing? Those shoulders look new.” Wilhelm grunted.

“Last mission I got shot in the shoulder with an electric elemental pistol. Hurt like a bitch, so I got some enhancements.” That was apparently that, as Wilhelm went back to sipping his drink and watching as Nisha made the waiter go and get a round for the table. She had won, to no one's surprise.

Tim leaned in to whisper to him. “I think most people just use a shield, not get new robot body parts.”

Jack snorted and shrugged. He wasn't wrong.

“So what's this all about, pretty boy?” Nisha asked as she sat down beside Wilhelm. Jack appreciated how straightforward she was.

“Hey now, who said this was about something? Can't I just visit with my pals?” He looked around the table and was met with three identical looks of disbelief. Rude.

“Fine, jeez. Let a guy have a drink first, then I'll tell you my tale of woe.”

4 drinks later and he did just that, but only after making Tim tell a recent story about having a baby throw up on him during a publicity event on an outskirt planet. He needed to sound less lame when he told his friends he had feelings.

Surprisingly Tim was the first to speak.

“I'm so confused. You're paying a prostitute to cuddle with you?”

Jack glared. That was exactly what Jack had thought Soft Sleeps was at first, but now it sounded weirdly dirty.

“ _No,_ Tim. He never does sexual stuff with customers, this is a legitimate business on Helios for cuddling and stuff.” Tim still looked confused, but Nisha took her chance to speak.

“My god you're soft. Hey, why didn't I get paid to cuddle with your ass? You were always latched on to me.”

“Because you adored my ass. Also I gave you a town and _so_ many guns, so I think that's payment enough.”

“I still don't really understand. Why did you reach out to get someone to cuddle you?” Tim asked.

“Because I - I don't know I just wanted to try it I guess. They're on my space station. Why not?”

None of them looked like they really believed it, but no one called him out either. That's what friends were for.

It was Wilhelm to break the silence first this time.

“So you like this dude.”

“I guess? I mean I like when he sits on my lap for sure. And I think about him outside of work. Plus he's really cute and leggy.”

“But it's his job. People do weird shit for money, Jack. How do you know he's interested?”

Jack frowned. He and Rhys spent more time together than apart at this point, but he was being paid to be with Jack. Still, they always had fun, right? Rhys seemed to like cuddling with him, but they also had really good banter. Plus he knew Rhys loved his food. So why couldn't it be more? Rhys could be his little boyfriend, waiting to cuddle up with him at home. It would be nice.

“Well I don't, but. I can make him interested?” He meant it as a statement but it came out more like a question.

“I guess you could try and woo him. If he likes your food, make him special meals?” Tim suggested.

“Buy him a town, that definitely helps.” Nisha added.

“Destroy his enemies. That always makes me happy.” Wilhelm concluded.

“Y'know what. I think I can work with that.”

So began _Operation: Woo Rhys._

\--

_Phase 1:_

Tim's idea seemed like the easiest place to start, and Rhys _had_ mentioned getting paid in food. Jack had always heard that the way to a man's heart was through his stomach. He'd never tried to win a man's heart before, but hopefully his cooking was good enough to convince Rhys.

He started simple, because Rhys wasn't that hard to impress with food and also he wanted something easy to bring to the office. There was definitely nothing casual about an impromptu steak dinner.

The only issue was figuring out what flavours Rhys liked. From what Jack could tell, Rhys liked just about anything which made it frustrating trying to figure out what his favourites were.

 But there was no way not to spoil the surprise without asking Rhys, so instead Jack decided to make an array of flavours from fruity and sweet like raspberry buttercream and chocolate ganache to the more savoury options of salted caramel and lemon curd. Jack spent the better part of his night after work making the most perfect macarons he could for Rhys.

Tuesday afternoon they met up in Jack's office once again and almost as soon as Rhys was in viewing distance his eyes were on the sweets.

“Jack. _What are those?”_ Rhys asked immediately. He hadn't actually looked at Jack yet; he was too busy staring adoringly at the macarons.

“These, Rhysie, are macarons. They're a pain to make, but I figured I had some leftover so why not tip my favourite cuddle buddy?” That was a lie. These were the most perfect macarons he had made, but there was about 40 imperfect ones leftover at his place. Rhys snorted and actually looked at Jack for the first time since entering.

“I'm your only cuddle buddy, and if these are the perks I get it better stay that way.”

“Now now kiddo, sharing is caring and all that crap. See? I'm sharing these with you. Have at it.” He pulled off the glass lid from the container which had been protecting the delicate sweets and offered the container up to Rhys.

“Wait. All of these? They're all for me?”

Jack shot Rhys an unimpressed stare that made it clear Rhys was being a dope. Rhys just beamed and reached for the first one, sniffing it and then taking a bite when his nose wasn't offended by the smell.

Rhys closed his eyes as he chewed before letting out an obnoxious moan.

“ _God,_ Jack that's so good. What the hell.”

Jack grunted and shifted uncomfortably in his chair. This wasn't what he had expected but Rhys just had to be all cute and obscene.

“Well I'm glad you're enjoying. Now enjoy it over here with your perky butt in my lap.”

Rhys mock saluted Jack and made his way over with his mouth full. Getting situated was a lot more difficult this time since Rhys refused to put down his treat, but eventually Rhys was sitting with his back to Jack so that he had easy access to the desk where the rest of the macarons sat. Jack had his head resting on Rhys’ shoulder with both of his arms wrapped around the lanky man. He was pretending to be focused on work but it was very difficult when Rhys kept complimenting him and moaning.

That was how the rest of the session went. Jack considered it a success; Rhys loved the macarons and had admitted that he was ‘always a slut for salted caramel’ which made Jack choke on his spit.

Rhys had even graciously laughed off the now constant boner Jack seemed to get around him. Hopefully things continued to prosper and Jack didn't die from the blue balls he was giving himself.

\--

_Phase 2:_

Jack wasn't exactly sure how to go about the next part of the plan. Giving Nisha land on Pandora was easy. He basically gave her the funds and the guns and in twenty minutes it was hers. But he was pretty sure Rhys wouldn't want to be on Pandora, and more importantly Jack didn't want Rhys far away from him in the first place.

So he settled on something smaller, but a much more dangerous subject to broach. The arm.

Jack wasn't sure how Rhys had lost his arm. There were many people on Helios that got their flesh limbs removed for the cybernetic enhancements; he knew ol’ Wallethead had a dumb gold pinky that was impressing literally no one and had been optional. Given Rhys’ sensitivity Jack had a feeling that this wasn't a willing decision.

Jack had kept true to the contract - they never spoke about Rhys’ 'metal bits’, he barely even touched the arm despite wanting to geek out over cybernetics so close to his face. But he did look at the arm, and it was obvious that it was outdated and worn out. It was a big, chunky yellow thing, one of their first models after Jack took over Hyperion. It didn't fit Rhys’ frame at all, and probably caused a lot of unnecessary strain given their current advancements.

Jack started designing the arm well before he brought it up to Rhys. The design was basically finalized and ready to go but he figured this time it would be smarter to ruin the surprise to see what Rhys thought and what features he might want. He didn't want to give Rhys a finished arm only to get beat with it.

The following Wednesday they were on Jack's couch. He had Rhys’ head resting in his lap and was stroking a hand through his hair as a change of pace. Rhys had been fussy at first about his hair getting messed up but now he was a relaxed puddle, his eyes closed.

“Hey Rhysie.” Jack started. Rhys’ only response was a hum of acknowledgement. Jack wasn't really sure how to subtly bring it up so he just blurted out.

“Do you want an arm?”

Rhys opened his eyes and looked up at Jack. He didn't look offended yet, just genuinely confused.

“Excuse me?”

“Do you… a new cybernetic arm? Shiny and new and free?” Jack tried. Honestly how was he the CEO of this company? That was the worst sales pitch he had ever given. Probably because he actually cared about Rhys’ opinion.

Rhys sat up and looked at Jack.

“Why?”

Jack blanched. That was definitely not what he expected.

“Because yours is old and probably hurting you?”

“No, I get that. It's not the best. Why are you offering me one?”

Jack wasn't great at being honest, but he _was_ great at talking himself up.

“Because I'm a benevolent god who likes cuddling your cute butt, Rhysie. Be happy, you're one of Handsome Jack's favourites. I take care of my own.”

“I guess I'm not against it, but don't you think that's a little much?” Rhys hesitated.

“Kiddo, money isn't an issue for me. The macarons I made you the other day were more complicated than giving you a new arm. Just tell Papa Jack the details, what colour and cool features do you want?”

And that was that. A week later Rhys had a fancy new chrome arm. Jack had even included the shield built to integrate with his cybernetics that Digmen screwed up weeks ago as a sentimental gift. That was how he met Rhys after all.

It looked good. It was closer to the actual size of his flesh arm and could fit under sleeves easily, although most of Rhys’ clothing was made for one arm at this point anyways.

More importantly, Rhys looked so happy when he smiled and hugged Jack for the first time with his new arm. Jack knew it was worth it.

\--

_Phase 3:_

Destroying Rhys’ enemies was almost as simple as baking desserts for him. Rhys had admitted in one of their first meetings that he lost his job to his rival and was clearly bitter about it, so Jack would just take care of the guy for Rhys. Easy. He just needed to find out who the rival was.

They were sitting in Jack's chair on a Thursday morning eating breakfast that Rhys had picked up when Jack decided to bring it up.

“Hey Rhysie. Who was the asshole that took your job?”

Rhys paused from chewing his bagel and raised an eyebrow at Jack.

“Where did that come from?”

“Come on, tell me. I'm in the mood to help conduct a little revenge. You hate him, right? Why not?”

Rhys hummed but nodded.

“You probably don't know him, but his name is Hugo Vasquez. He's a gross smug asshole with a golden pinky. Always makes weird, vaguely sexual threats.” Rhys scrunched up his face just at the thought. Jack laughed.

“Oho Rhysie. _Babe._ This is a treat, I know exactly who you're talking about.”

Jack pushed himself closer to Rhys so that he could activate the PA system that let him broadcast messages across Hyperion. Rhys balked.

“Wait - wait what are you doing? Right now?!”

“Yeah, baby. What's the point in getting revenge if you can't even watch it happen?” With that he flipped the switch, broadcasting his voice live. Rhys was grateful that he'd been merciful enough not to play the video feed. He really didn't need everyone on Helios to see him sitting in Jack's lap eating a bagel.

“Good morning Hyperion, Handsome Jack here, your personal hero and friend. How'd you all sleep last night? I slept like a baby on the highest thread count sheets - I'm pretty sure the species used for them is extinct now.

Anyways, enough about me. We're here to talk about my good pal Hugo Vasquez, although I used to know him as Wallethead. You guys know who I'm talking about, right? Smarmy prick with the comb-over? Y'know, he used to work in the mail room before he made it big. Guy was totally bald, and I'd stick money to his head. Ahh, great times. Hey Wallethead, why don't you come on up to my office? We can reminisce together. Jack out.” And then the PA system shut off.

Jack turned to gauge Rhys’ reaction. He somehow looked amazed and horrified at the same time.

“Are you… is that all true? _Wallethead?_ ” Jack squeezed Rhys’ side and smiled.

“Have I ever lied to you? 'Course it's true. If he knows what's good for him he'll head on up here and then we can make fun of him together. We can airlock him too! And hey, if he doesn't show up then I get to hunt him down. That's fun too.”

Jack felt proud of himself honestly. Killing your crush's enemies was romantic and totally chivalrous.

“Jack, that's...weirdly sweet? I don't really care about killing him, but I'm definitely all for humiliating him.” Rhys smiled.

It took Vasquez all of 5 minutes to make it up to Jack's office. The man looked frazzled; hair out of place and breathing heavily. His face was red, whether it was from the exhaustion of running to Jack's office or the embarrassment of getting called out was unclear.

Rhys was still sitting in Jack's lap although he had finished his food. Jack had a casual arm around his shoulders like there was nothing odd about what was going on. Vasquez looked confused and mortified; it was bad enough being shamed by Handsome Jack, but his rival was also there sitting in the lap of his hero.

“Hey, nice hustle sport. How's it going?”

“Handsome Jack, sir. What's going on?” Vasquez replied.

“Well Rhysie here told me about the time that you made him assistant vice janitor. Thing is, I'm pretty partial to the kid now. Just seemed fair for us to all be on equal ground here, right? Airing our dirty laundry?”

“I suppose, sir?” He tried again, weakly. He still looked incredibly confused.

“Enough about me, though. What do you think, pumpkin? Anything you want to say to ol’ Wallethead?”

“Everything I want to say is really immature. I'm loving this though.” Jack preened at the words.

“Now I know you said you didn't want to kill him, which is lame but I'll respect your decision. I think there's something fun we can do still though. Hop off, Rhysie.” Jack pat Rhys’ side and the younger man slid off his lap in confusion. He spent a minute digging through his many desk drawers before finding what he was looking for and holding it up.

Rhys beamed. Vasquez looked mortified. Jack looked triumphant, holding an electric razor.

“Hold still, Vasquez. It's this or I rip the hair plugs out myself.”

It didn't take long. Rhys actually did the first swipe before passing it over to Jack and letting him finish. Vasquez left the office bald, thankful that he was at least still alive.

Jack set the razor down with a snicker, turning to look at Rhys who was smiling at him.

“That was terrible. I'm a bad person for enjoying that.” Jack snorted.

“Rhysie, that dude is an asshat. He deserves worse. You're not a bad person, you're almost as perfect as me.”

“Oh thank you, Mr. Perfect. You're my hero though, for real.”  Jack beamed and walked closer to Rhys, wrapping his arms around him.

The two stood there in the middle of Jack's office, Jack with his arms around Rhys’ waist and Rhys with his around Jack's neck, just smiling at each other.

And then Jack leaned in and kissed Rhys.

 

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey folks, sorry for the delay! KH3 came out so I was preoccupied. Once again I want to give thanks to everyone who has read my story and especially to all the people that give me feedback on here, discord, twitter, etc. I wouldn't have done this without your validation.
> 
> Please read the final note at the end, I need your input!

For a few brief seconds Jack felt his heart leap out of his chest and soar. This was exactly what he'd wanted; what he'd been missing. It wasn't just platonic affection that he desired, turns out he really missed relationships and he wanted that with Rhys specifically. It felt right.

Rhys apparently did not get that same memo however, because he quickly pulled away and separated himself from Jack with a confused expression.

“Uh. What was that about?”

That was absolutely not the reaction that Jack wanted to get right now. Rhys was supposed to kiss him back and tell him that he liked Jack too because Jack had done such a great job at wooing him, and also because he was amazing and had great hair. They were supposed to have rode off into the sunset on a pony made of diamonds. But now he apparently had to actually talk about his feelings because things were never that easy.

“I. Have feelings for you? Like, I like you?” Jack said hesitantly. Talking about emotions was hard enough as it is, but it was especially hard to stay confident when Rhys was giving him such a perplexed expression.

“No you don't.” Wait, what?

“Uh? Yes I do?” He tried again.

“No, Jack, you don't. You're lonely and I'm the only one giving you constant affection. You don't really like _me.”_

Jack gaped, at a loss for words. How do you respond to that? Unfortunately he didn't get the chance to try and formulate any type of response because Rhys was already making a break for it.

“Listen, I can't be here. I - I gotta go. I'm sorry, contact Fiona, she can get you someone else or something.”

“Wait, Rhys-” Jack called, reaching a hand out to stop Rhys who was already backing away towards the door. Rhys quickly moved away from his hand and hurried out of the room

As the door slid shut, Jack was left standing in the middle of his office with a jumble of emotions; confused, sad, angry, scared, _pining_.

He wanted Rhys, he knew that now more than ever. He liked him, and not just for the cuddling. He thought he'd made that clear the past few weeks with his wooing but apparently that wasn't enough to get through to the younger man.

_What the fuck do I do now?_

\--

Rhys was not good in high pressure situations. If he was being introspective, he might make note that this was why he hadn't succeeded in Hyperion. Of course Vasquez had been a huge road block, but Rhys had given up almost immediately after getting demoted to do a way easier, stress-free job and it had honestly been a relief.

But Rhys was not willing to be introspective right now, because Handsome Jack had just fucking kissed him. The stress and pressure had never been higher.

As soon as he got home he rushed to his bedroom and slammed the door shut, locking it. Vaughn wasn't home and wouldn't be for a few hours because he worked normal 9-5 office hours, which left Rhys with plenty of time to freak the hell out in solitude.

Because seriously, what the hell was that? Jack had kissed him? _Him?_ Were Fiona and Sasha actually right, did Jack actually like _him?_ But this was his job! There wasn't supposed to be feelings here, they didn't even talk that much!

Except recently they had talked more. And Jack had done a lot of sweet things; the cooking, the arm, Wallethead. Was that Jack trying to show he had feelings?

And what would would happen now? He had rejected Jack. Handsome Jack, who murdered a guy last week for coughing during a meeting because it annoyed him. How soon would it be until Jack or his men barged in and took him to the chopping block?

Unfortunately he was no less wound up by the time Vaughn came home, but he _was_ hungry, so he made his way reluctantly into the kitchen where Vaughn was cooking.

“Hello Vaughn my buddy ol’ pal. Have you uh, heard anything from Handsome Jack today?” Rhys tried casually. It wasn't subtle at all but he needed to know if there was a manhunt out for him already. Vaughn paused from moving vegetables in a pan to give Rhys a truly perplexed expression.

“Have I heard from Handsome Jack. Sure Rhys, he said we're going to go golfing on Elpis next week. Because we're apparently close like that.” He raised a hand with two crossed fingers to signify how close they were. Rhys rolled his eyes.

“Dude, why would I have heard from Handsome Jack? Shouldn't I be asking you that question? You're practically dating.”

“We are _not_ dating.” Rhys snapped. Vaughn frowned and turned down the heat, letting the food cook without his supervision so that he could turn and cross his arms at Rhys.

“What's going on, man? What did you do?”

“I didn't do anything! Well I mean I guess I did, but he started it. Handsome Jack, uh. Kissed me today. And then I panicked and fled his office.”

Vaughn gaped at him, reaching a hand out blindly to grab the closest chair and sit down.

“Dude. _Dude_. Dude! Oh, dude.” Vaughn called in different octives.

“I’m sorry are you… going through the stages of grief with different tones of dude here? Please say something else. Anything.”

“Dude! I mean Rhys! How am I supposed to react, that's nuts! I didn't even know Jack had a heart. What are you going to do? Do Fiona and Sasha know yet?” Rhys groaned.

“I haven't even called them. Listen, give me a few days to go into hiding. I need to figure out a plan here. Also food. Give me food, please.”

Vaughn had been sympathetic and greatly concerned the first two days, giving Rhys food and leaving him to mope in the apartment. But by day three it was clear that Handsome Jack was not coming to their apartment like a scorned lover to kill Rhys. The only one pounding on their door was a very pissed off Fiona. Vaughn had taken one look at her and held the door open so she could enter.

“Rhys-Whatever-your-middle-name is-Davies! Where the fuck have you been!” Fiona yelled, making her way into the apartment like she owned the place. She quickly spotted Rhys’ door and kicked it open. Rhys yelped.

“Holy shit, if you just broke my door you're paying for it. Our landlord will be pissed.”

“If you want money you can come to work, jackass! I've called you 36 times in the past three days. You've missed 6 appointments, not to mention apparently Handsome Jack has talked about cancelling his services with Carol. What the fuck happened?” Rhys’ heart sank. Of course it was good to hear that Jack wasn't trying to actively kill him, but apparently instead of going with another agent he'd just ended his services? No wonder Fiona was mad.

A tiny voice in Rhys’ head voiced another concern. _If Jack isn't working with Soft Sleeps anymore, would he ever see him again?_

“God, let me put on some pants and we can talk about this in the living room.” Fiona rolled her eyes and stormed her way out of the room where Vaughn was sitting and trying to not look like he was obviously eavesdropping.

A few minutes later Rhys made his way out of his bedroom with a pout and flopped on the couch dramatically like a child who had been caught doing something bad and was awaiting punishment from his parents.

“Well?” Fiona said expectantly, her arms crossed. Vaughn looked back and forth between the two of them but made no move to leave.

“Handsome Jack kissed me and told me he has feelings for me. I panicked and fled.”

Fiona for her part tried her best to not look too shocked. She was doing better than Vaughn had. She sat back in her chair and let out a long breath.

“Jeez. I had a hunch that might be the case, but I figured maybe he was just doing some weird alpha male bullshit by making sure most of your appointments were with him, not actual feelings.” Fiona muttered.

“I would have appreciated a head's up, but I'll forgive you for living through the trauma of having to kiss Handsome Jack.”

Rhys glared. It hadn't been bad.

“So what's your plan, Rhys? I'm not saying you have to do appointments with him any longer, but you need to let me know.” Fiona continued.

“Honestly I don't really know. I was hoping the answer would come to me magically but it hasn't.”

“Well. He apparently likes you, but how do you feel about him?” Vaughn chimed in. Fiona groaned in the background about 'feelings’ but stared at Rhys expectantly nonetheless.

“I like him as a person for sure. He was always my hero, and turns out he can be really nice when he wants to be. I mean he literally gave me a new arm! Also I made _so_ many boner jokes at his expense and he didn't kill me. It was definitely fun.” Rhys smiled at the thought but it quickly faded as he really thought about the question.

Did he like Jack, though? _Like-like?_

It was hard to imagine dating the CEO, but then again Rhys had never imagined meeting him or cuddling with him never mind dating him. Jack was just full of surprises that way.

They worked well together as cuddle partners and always had great banter, but Rhys didn't really know Jack enough to say that he was boyfriend material.

But. _But._

The idea of getting to know him better - to go on dates instead of just cooped up in Jack's office or at his place - well Rhys didn't feel opposed to that at all.

“I think I might.” Vaughn balked. Fiona sighed but nodded.

“Then like I said before Rhys. What's your plan?”

\--

It had been a full week since Jack had seen Rhys and he was loathe to admit that in some ways Rhys had been right.

Not about whether Jack had a crush - _who was Rhys to decide whether Jack had feelings or not?_ (a bitter thought he'd circled over for the last 7 days).

But as much as he hated to admit it, Rhys was right that he was lonely. It had never felt more apparent that week. He kept pausing from work when he was frustrated, his hands moving to squeeze a waist that wasn't there; tell a joke to an empty room.

It begged the question; was it really Rhys that Jack liked, or was it the constant physical affection like he'd said? There was only one way to find out.

Jack called Soft Sleeps, listening to the now familiar hold music before the receptionist chimed in with her greeting.

“It's Jack.” He grunted.

“Oh! Handsome Jack sir, I'm so sorry but it looks like Rhys is taking some personal time -”

“Yeah I don't care about that. Give me someone else.” There was a pause on the other line and what sounded like muffled whispering.

“Y-yes, of course sir. We can have someone sent up right away to go through preferences together.”

“Yeah. Do that.” And then he hung up.

30 minutes later and a girl was standing in his office; Yvette Jansen according to her paperwork. She was extremely new to Soft Sleeps apparently which made Jack wonder why they would have sent her to _him_ of all people, but that wasn't his problem.

They went through the preferences. Jack actually filled out his paper this time, and listened to Yvette talk about how she didn't want anyone to touch her hair. It left him thinking about the many times when he'd played with Rhys’ hair, especially early in the mornings when he had spent the night and all the gel had worn off, leaving it smooth and pliable.

Jack pushed the thought away and went over to his couch once they finished the paperwork.

“Come cuddle with me then.” Yvette looked shocked - just like Rhys had - but made her way over without protest. She sat closely beside him and rested her head on his shoulder, while Jack wrapped an arm around her waist. They sat for a moment.

It was... different from Rhys. She had more curves of course, and there was definitely a different height dynamic going on. He didn't have the chill of a metal arm touching him anywhere, or hair jabbing into his face. With Rhys it had been so easy even on the first try. His body had just melted into it, it had felt like coming home. This was not that; all he could think about were the differences and how she was a stranger.

He hated it.

“Stop. Get up, get out.” Jack barked, pushing Yvette away and getting up from the couch. It had probably been 15 minutes total, just sitting there 'cuddling’ in silence and he couldn't stand it any longer.

“Did I do something wrong?” She tried.

“Yes! No? You're not Rhys, okay? Just - get out, and tell your company never to contact me again. I'm done.”

Yvette left quickly after that and Jack flopped in his chair once again. He felt sick.

He had been sitting with an attractive woman and all he could think about is how she wasn't his dork. But if Rhys didn't want to be with him, then Jack could be a grown up.

He didn't need Rhys. He would just go back to the way things were before.

\--

2 days later and Rhys was back at Soft Sleeps.

He had been back in the office for not even a minute before Sasha dragged him to the back, a very deja vu scenario.

“I haven't been back to work for 5 minutes and I'm already in trouble?” He joked. Both sisters shot him grim expressions. Wow, super deja vu.

“There's some things you need to know so I'll come right out and say it. While you were gone, Jack tried an appointment with another agent here.” Sasha started. Rhys felt his heart sink into his stomach. _Guess he really just wanted the physical affection after all, huh?_

“Hey! Stop pouting, I'm not done yet you dork. It lasted all of ten minutes before Yvette came back. She said that Jack complained that it wasn't you.” Sasha continued. Just like that Rhys felt his heart leap.

“The problem is  he also said that he's done with Soft Sleeps. I tried contacting him for you but we can't get through to his office, his receptionist blocks the calls for him.” Fiona continued for her sister.

“So if I want to speak to Jack again and make this work… I'm going to have to try and just barge in, huh?” Rhys wondered aloud. Sasha shrugged.

“You already caught his interest once, right? Let's hope you know how to do it again.”

\--

It was a Friday afternoon when Rhys tried just that, but he didn't come unprepared. Jack had tried his best to woo Rhys, and now it was his turn to return the favour.

He was well aware that he probably looked weird carrying all of his gifts to the top floor of Helios, but Rhys didn't care. He was just thankful Jack had apparently forgot to change his permissions; that made his job a lot easier.

Unfortunately the cold receptionist was still present, and she raised an eyebrow at Rhys as he walked up.

“Please tell Jack I'm here. I have to talk to him.” Rhys tried. She frowned at him.

“Handsome Jack said no one from Soft Sleeps was to contact him. He's not interested in your business any longer.”

“I'm not here on business, this is personal. Please just this once, I need to see him.” Rhys gave his best possible puppy dog eyes. She rolled her eyes back at him.

“Whatever, I'm sick of his moping honestly. If this works you better talk him into giving me a raise though.” And just like that the door beeped to allow him entrance into Jack's office.

“I will! Thank you so much!” Rhys called, making his way into the office quickly lest she change her mind.

As soon as he opened the door he heard Jack yelling.

“Meg! You're supposed to actually tell me when I have visitors, who -” Jack paused, eyes widening as he saw Rhys walk in to his office. They quickly narrowed.

“The hell are you doing here?” Jack barked. Rhys bit his lip and started.

“Okay I know you love carbs so I made you homemade pretzels. Vaughn helped so they might secretly be healthy, but I tried one and it was pretty good! I also got you this unicorn thing? It's like that one you showed me but this one can go on your desk! I wasn't really sure how to give you a revenge gift since you have so many enemies and I've never killed someone, but -” Rhys rambled before Jack cut him off.

“Rhys, what are you talking about? What's going on here?” Jack stared at Rhys in confusion and maybe mild amusement. Rhys beamed.

“I’m wooing you back!”

Jack was still confused but he felt his heart leap. Did this mean-?

“Why would you want to do that?” He said weakly, making his way closer to Rhys. Rhys blushed.

“Um, because maybe I like you too, okay? And maybe I want to give this a chance. So if you still like me, maybe we could go on dates and cuddle off the books.” Rhys said, smiling at Jack who had stopped in front of him.

“Rhysie… I'd like that a lot.” Jack smiled back at Rhys. He helped Rhys quickly place the items he'd brought in on his desk before wrapping his arms around the younger man. His arms quickly made their way around Rhys’ waist in what was _their_ spot, and just like that he felt himself melt into the embrace, especially when Rhys wrapped his arms around his neck. _Like coming home._ God he'd missed this.

For the second time their lips met in a kiss. This time no one pulled away for a long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So honestly I think that this could easily conclude right here, but I have started on a chapter 5 that's basically smut, fluff, and a conclusion. Let me know if you think I should post that as well or if we are good right here.


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